Nasjota Records / Jota magazine - Arabic Hip hop !!

a friend of mine told me about this record label and magazine--- cool stuff - check it out!

Nasjota Records

Jota Magazine

Les Surfs - international Ye Ye group

(above photo borrowed from here)
Les Surfs, a six member group, formed in 1959, in Fiakarana (Madagascar) were incredibly popular in France and Spain.. i just love them.. so groovy and charming.. read more (in french) here.. and then theres this excellent tribute site, IL ÉTAIT UNE FOIS.....LES SURFS - the most incredible part of this website is the photo archive... well worth a visit!

live in barcelona part 2

live in barcelona part 1

ca n'a pas d'importance

je me fais au cinema

Reviens Vite et Oublie / be my baby

Kuwaiti singer Shams' satire of Bush, the war, the west, (and herself..) "Ahlan Ezayak"

ok, so maybe this video is a bit old now.. (2007, lol) but still worth checking out if you missed it like me...

commentary borrowed from another blog (Informed Comment) below :

"When I hear Bush and Cheney keep talking about "getting the job done" in Iraq, the thing that most amazes me is that they don't know they are laughingstocks in the region. It isn't just that they are widely hated, or distrusted, or viewed as failures. It is that people are laughing at them. No surge can fix that.

The Arab singer Shams shows her disdain of George W. Bush in an MTV-style video clip that is popular in the Arab world these days. She says, "Hi! How are you?" as a cardboard Bush smiles and raises his shoulders idiotically. "No one is like you," she adds, "and there certainly aren't two of you." She shakes her head in front of a White House stage prop."

"Natali Smolenski commented on this posting, adds some descriptions of scenes and translated a little more of the lyrics:

'I had even forgotten your features, where you had come from, your look. You remind me of some guy I haven't seen for two years.

Other tidbits:

I'm not your relative, I'm not your sweetheart.

My aunt and your aunt have quarreled/become separated. Whether you've been hurt by my heart or you've fallen in love with me, I refuse you in both cases.
Go buy yourself and get away from me' "

"some of the video is a critique of Westernizing Arabs who go in for superficial imitations of the American lifestyle and ruin their own beauty and authenticity in the process. This kind of parodic critique of the Westernizer is at least 140 years old, going back to comedic dialogues in newspapers of the 1860s. Shams is aware that she could be accused of Westernizing herself, and shows her veiled "double", presumably authentic self, in a prison mug shot (implying that Bush would lock up any authentic Arabs). There is also a scene where it is implied that the Arab governments are puppets of Bush, and Shams takes delight in snipping the strings."

She sings in front of a sign that says "Democracy." She chases away confused US troops. She mugs for the camera and does a little belly dance. She has the statue of liberty lady join in the dance. She lies down on the word "Guantanamo," referring to the allegations of the use of torture there, a counterpoint to the block letters "Democracy" earlier.

What is most striking of all is the tone of familiarity and intimacy along with the contempt. Bush....like Mubarak or Asad, and is subject to all the same parodying and jokes that they are in the Arab street.

Another straw in the wind is that Shams is Kuwaiti, and Kuwaitis were for a long time the most pro-American Arabs, grateful for having been rescued from Saddam in the Gulf War. Some Kuwaiti op-ed writers have taken strong exception to the video."

PODCAST LINK - Interview with Dave Wakeling of The Beat (aka the English Beat)

PODCAST - updated link!

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR -

新年快乐 - (Happy New Year!)

恭喜發財 (Congratulations and be prosperous)

Gong Xi Fa Cai! niú nián!!

another useful phrase : "CAUTION: extremely flammable, do not hold firecracker in hand, light fuse and get away"

some kids say "Congratulations and be prosperous, now give me a red envelope!" when they're being cheeky.... (the red envelope usually contains some amount of money. )

YEARS of The Ox - 2009, 2021, 2033

pronounced "Niu" in Chinese -- Ushi or Oushi in japanese -- in Vietnam, the water buffalo replaces the ox on the calendar...

i found a great description someone (hongjing) posted on Friendster (thanks!) :

"Chinese new year 2009 falls on January 26, 2009 when Chinese twelve-year circle will roll into the year of ox. In Chinese language, ox is pronounced as Niu. Niu, as an animal in general, was playing the role of dragging a plough in field before the invention of modern industrialized farm tools in Chinese history. The image of Niu in Chinese culture is hard-working and down-to-earth so that it is highly respected by Chinese.

When there are different terms, such as ox, bull, cattle, etc., to refer to different species of one kind, there is only one, Niu, for all those terms. And in Chinese there is no special term for beef but just the addition of a word, Rou which means meat in general, to Niu that forms a phrase of Niu Rou. Bull market in Chinese is called Niu Shi with shi standing for market. Niu is also a family name in China and a commonly used one.

Thanks to the shape of Niu, being strong and muscular, and its powerful moos, Niu has become a new slang frequently used by Chinese young and more and more Chinese of all ages. It, functioning as an adjective, is used to praise a capable person. And in most cases it is used humorously. Particularly, when the year of ox is coming around, Chinese are saying greetings mixing Niu the symbolic animal of the year and Niu the popularly used slang, such as wish you be Niu in the year of Niu, which means wish you a success in the year of ox."


here are some nice e-cards

for some great crafts and games for your kids - click here and here

Men vs Women soccer match causes controversy in Iran

Alleged Soccer match in Iran, Women vs Men, draws fines and suspensions from government.. read more here.

here's a preview of a film called "Offsides" about a young woman sneaking into the soccer (football) stadium in Iran

Oh- one more cool Indian cinema blog - Filmi Geek

Filmi Geek

Another cool Indian cinema, etc Blog

Dances on the Footpath
plus, lots of links to other Indian cinema destinations.... check it out!

(Classic) Tamil Film blog

Tamil Film Story

Cool blog from a behind the scenes veteran of Indian films

check out this post recounting his work on the set of "Ishq Ishq Ishq" in 1973

The Beat (aka the English Beat) - Richmond Sat Jan 31st at Toad's Place..

TUNE IN THIS SUNDAY to WRIR (97.3FM locally) at 7pm EST for "If Music Could Talk" featuring AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH DAVE WAKELING - Vocalist & frontman for THE BEAT!


The English Beat
Bad Manners
Saturday, January 31st

more info here: Toad's Place

English Ska heroes The English Beat formed in 1978. Their current lineup features original lead singer Dave Wakeling and keyboardist Mickey Billingham, formerly of Dexy's Midnight Runners.
Joining them are Bad Manners, also from England. A 2-Tone Ska revival band, known for frontman Buster Bloodvessel's crazy antics onstage.
General Admission: $20 - buy tickets HERE or at Plan 9 and BK Music

If Music Could Talk - Jan 18 2009 - a really cool mix of diverse dancefloor shakin hits for your listening enjoyment

( yes, even G Dubya used to secretly "listen in" to "If Music Could Talk" on Sundays at 7pm EST on WRIR )

PODCAST LINK

Barack Obama! the forty-fourth PRESIDENT OF THE United States! (music videos to celebrate this occasion...)

Lady Ann releases her own version of "Hit the Road Jack"

Dancehall legend Lady Ann has just released a hard hitting version of Ray Charles' "Hit the Road Jack" (which I played 2 weeks ago on my radio show) the song features a great rhythm and production ..and the lyrics demand that men start pulling their weight or else "see ya!"

Lady Ann has been really busy making moves this past year... a new album, plus several collaborations released as singles, 2 new videos, and lots of radio and TV appearances... go ahead Lady Ann!

check Lady Ann out here

get her new CD Bad Gyal inna dance here

get it on wax here

she was recently written up in West Indian Times

watch an episode from a strange little show that im beginning to like called "Checkerboard Kids" featuring Lady Ann doing the song "Ticket" where she answers to rival DJ Sista Nancy's musical claim that all other female djs want to be like her.... ( + interview and other live songs )


here's a video she did recently for "Informer"


another recent video! -->



for more perspective here's the interview with Lady Ann a while back from "If Music Could Talk"

The BEAT (aka the English Beat) - Richmond Sat Jan 31st at Toad's Place..

More Info HERE
"Tears of a clown"

"Mirror in the Bathroom"

"too nice to talk to"

"Stand Down Margaret" acoustic version by Dave Wakeling - (once you get through the annoying commercial radio DJ one liners, its actually a pretty good version of this classic song)

Carla Alexandar (with Ladybug mecca) - Arte Spray

Bye Bye BUSH!!

Tamil Song - En Anbe - from Satyam

I love the chilled out hip hop influenced rhythm of this song, and also the added melodic touch of what sounds to me like Japanese "shamisen" - the sort of harp/banjo sounding instrument.. the movie sequences are a little overdramatic for my tastes, but i love this song..

music : Harris Jeyaraj

here's another cool one from the same film - song : "Paal pappali"



watch the film on youtube here

If Music Could Talk - Jan 11 2009 - full moon fever and reggae rockas

PODCAST LINK

this past sunday, I was feeling really inspired by a documentary i watched over the weekend.. Reggae Nashville, originally entitled "Deep Roots Music", narrated by the late great Mikey Dread, dread at the controls,... so i decided to play lots of reggae during this show.. there are so many incredible reggae recordings out there that i havent even heard yet.. an island just full of talented singers and djs.. big respect to jamaica! and much love and respect to the late legend, Mikey Dread.. (during this podcast, you can hear a radio drop from him that was done especially for this show a year before he passed away)

also, the show starts out with another quirky soulful full moon mix of jazz, electronic breaks, african rhythms, soul, and blues...

music speaks...

(from the documentary i mentioned ) --- :>

Buraka Som Sistema - Sound of Kuduro

killer cut from Buraka Som Sistema "Sound of Kuduro" featuring featuring DJ Znobia, M.I.A., Saborosa and Puto Prata.

some SICK breakdancin hellacopta twirls in this one... jeez!!

the most hard core riddim ive heard for a while...

Slumdog Millionaire wins Golden Globe's Best Motion Picture award!!

(above: l-r - Danny Boyle, Freida Pinto, Dev Patel )
( below : Freida Pinto )





Slumdog Millionaire wins big at the Golden Globes -
Best Motion Picture - Drama
Best Director - Danny Boyle
Best Screenplay - Written by Simon Beaufoy
Best Original Score - AR Rahman

click here to see the rundown of awards - and click the movie camera icon there to see a replay of the ceremonies!!

Read an article about it on BBC

Bollywood Night in '09

start the new year off right!! one week after new years eve's "Mercy" soul dance party at Cous Cous (highly recommended), keep things movin in the right direction with Bollywood night!! on Jan 10th, 2009

Slumdog Millionaire

SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE - What an incredible movie... last week i said during the show just before i played 3 cuts off the soundtrack.. "i havent seen it yet, but i want to.." well, just like that.. the next day i was driving to work and a local theatre had just started playing this film.. so i saw the 4pm showing the very next day! what a coincidence.. funny, this film is all about life's magical coincidences.. DESTINY.. such a deep movie.. so heart wrenching and beautiful.. the day i saw it was really cold, dark, and rainy, so when i left the theatre to go back home afterwards, i had to sit in my car and cry for about 10 minutes... something about this particular story.. and the heartbreaking stories of these slum kids.. the betrayal, and merciless exploitation.. and then, the triumph of true love... it just really got to me.. its great when a movie is so powerful that it makes you open up and reflect on life in a broad sense.. this movie did that... i felt such anger and disgust at the way poor children are expolited all over the world.. used for criminal labor, or forced to be sex workers... parts of this movie brought me close to nausea.. and then, there were other scenes that were just so true, and poetic.. and subtle, and real... destiny, and true love really do prevail, or at least, i hope they do..
According to the director, this story could have happened anywhere.. so it's "not about India" really specifically.. but I was really glad to see a film that shows another side of India, at least through different eyes than the Bollywood Glitz i'm normally exposed to..(and enjoy so much) the more varied perspective i get, the more i realize, i really just need to go to India and see for myself..
anyway, seems like this movie is flying pretty low under the radar as far as i can tell.. which makes me feel even more lucky to have stumbled upon it the very next day after i played the soundtrack (A.R. Rahman's latest masterpiece) on my radio show... these little coincidences in life are so amazing.. Watch the TRAILER, HERE

If Music Could Talk - Jan 4 2009 -some brand new (2008/9) Indian soundtracks with some older hits in there too

PODCAST LINK

(don't miss Bollywood night this Saturday at Cous Cous, 900 W Franklin Street, in Richmond VA!! starts 10:30 - FREE!)